Equipping & Encouraging Sunday School and Small Group Leaders

Make your Teaching Touchable

If you teach preschoolers, kids, students, or adults, don’t forget to make your teaching touchable. Many of the learners in your group are naturally wired with a bent toward holding and touching objects – they learn best when there is physical contact with an object. These kinesthetic learners (kinesthetic learning is a tactile learning style in which learning takes place by the students carrying out physical activities, rather than listening to a lecture or watching demonstrations).

Here are some ways to turn ordinary lesson elements into experiences that tactile learners will love:

Ask group members to add dirt to water to communicate the way sin permeates our lives

Allow each group member to hold a spike as you talk about the nails used to hold Jesus on the cross

Give maps to each group member and ask them to label important places as they are encountered in the Bible study

Ask group members to write something in response to a section of the Bible study

Provide the supplies needed for smaller groups of 3 to 4 people to assemble and create something that represents a truth they learned because of the Bible study

As you can see, there are these and many more ways you can involve your group members who prefer to learn through the sense of touch. Think ahead. Be creative. Don’t forget to appeal to these important kinds of group members who are wired by God to respond best when they can touch things.